Protect and Survive VI: Building Bridges
by RowenaR
Summary: In every couple's life there comes the day were you have to tell your family... let's see how Laura Cadman and Evan Lorne solve it.
1. Chapter 1

**Author:** RowenaR

**Rating:** K

**Category: **Humor

**Disclaimer:** Stargate belongs to Gekko and… all those other people making money with it. Anyway, I don't. Honestly. So – I don't own, you don't sue. Deal?

**Summary: **In every couple's life there comes the day were you have to tell your family... let's see how Laura Cadman and Evan Lorne solve it.**  
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**A/N: **Well then, just like I promised, a nice little two-parter, this time with the twist of a change of perspective... and my faithful reader **mac** might want to cut this one out (if you don't: Don't say I didn't warn you ;)). By the way, thanks to everyone who contributed to the song search. Even if I didn't take one of the songs you suggested, they still were great help to get me some ideas as to where I could possibly search.

Anyway, as always: Not a native speaker, so please excuse any weird grammatical constructions, run-ons and typos. Feedback will earn you a cookie, flames will roast my marshmellows.

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**Protect an****d Survive VI: Building bridges**

"_And just like stars burning bright  
Making holes in the night  
We are building bridges."_

_KT Tunstall, "Universe & U"_

**One**

She has just gotten home when the phone rings. Exasperated, she flings the mail on the living room's coffee table, not even having read the senders' addresses yet. So much for having a quiet evening with the children being taken care off by Charlie and his parents. As she picks up the receiver she takes great care to put on a friendly face so she won't startle the caller at the other end with answering too aggressively. Could very well be the Dean. "Anna Williamson speaking, what can I do for you?"

"Huh, you must be really getting old if you don't even recognize this phone number."

"Mom! I practically ran to the phone, because I just came back home from work. I thought picking up at all was a little more important than seeing who it actually is." She rolls her eyes, and she is sure that her mother can detect that even though she's thousands of miles away from her.

"Ah, then I take it you didn't have a moment to look at your mail today?" What the hell is this about now?

"Mom… I've had a hell of a day, it's raining cats and dogs outside and I practically dashed inside to get to the phone in time. No, I did not have a moment to look at my mail." Her mother, a retired art teacher who had to work with petulant teenagers for nearly all her working life, only sighs a little unnerved.

"Well, you should. Your brother has decided to grace us with a piece of his faraway exciting life again." Immediately her frustration and irritation at her mother's cool attitude has vanished and she makes a beeline for her coffee table. And yes, there's the characteristic little package with the cryptic postmarks and address codes on it. How could she have missed that?

"Nice of you to remind me, mom, but… what's so important about it that you have to phone me?" Usually, they both get the same video on DVD and an individual additional letter. In his mother's package, Evan usually includes a few sketches for her and something for their father. In her package, he includes something for the kids, a sealed letter for Charlie she never gets to see and now and then some little souvenir from that country where he's based. But usually their mother doesn't get so excited about it that she has to call her on the day the package arrives. So something extraordinary seems to have happened, and she really hopes it's nothing bad.

"Play the video and you'll see. And don't worry: I didn't really believe it either when I saw it for the first time." What the…? Why does her mother always have to be so secretive? But it's no use prying anymore so she simply ribs open the package, sets the letters and other contends apart for later and gets the DVD to play.

"Alright, so what… Oh, there he is." It's her brother, alright. Looking good as always, but maybe a bit older, like he had a lot on his hands lately. But it suits him, and from what she can see, he seems to be at ease. He isn't wearing his uniform, just some t-shirt and a jeans, sitting on something like a couch. It makes her wonder again what kind of base that actually is. The little stuff he sends home for them looks like being from some African or sometimes Asian country, but the base looks like a solid building, nothing like the usual US-American bases in Iraq and other countries you can see on TV.

"_Hi everyone! Hope everything is alright with you. There's been a mail hold-up somewhere, and so we still haven't gotten any mail from home, but they told us our outgoing mail can be proceeded so I decided to try it anyway, because… there's been some development here."_ Her mother on the other end chuckles, so obviously it's no _bad_ development. But she hates it when some people already know what's coming and simply can't keep from telling her, so she shushes her mother.

"_So… I should probably not waste any time anymore… I'd like to introduce you to someone."_ Huh? HUH? He didn't… did he? The way he's suddenly starting to get fidgety, looking a lot younger than before… like every time he introduced them to his newest girlfriend. She pauses the DVD.

"Let me guess… he's finally got a new girlfriend?" Her mother snorts.

"Wait, it's just getting started. I never thought your brother had that much of a comedian in him." Alright. That's obviously going to be good.

She hits the play-button again, and he turns his head to his left side, whispering loud enough for the camera to pick it up: _"Uh, Laura… that was your cue, you know."_ He turns back to the camera, mockingly rolling his eyes and saying: _"Biggest mouth in front of her CO, but afraid of a little camera."_

The answer is a pillow that comes flying through the picture, hitting him in the shoulder. That triggers his "Don't mess with me."-face and he half gets up, holding up his index finger. _"Be right back."_ Then he turns to his left and walks out of the picture frame, growling: _"Get here this instant, Lieutenant!"_

It's answered by an off-camera giggling and a female voice taunting: _"Come and get me, Major!"_ Blinking, she pauses the DVD again.

"Please tell me he's _not_ messing around with a _junior officer_." Being the wife and sister of US Air Force officers, she knows enough about military life that this can't be good for a soldier's career. And since when is Evan doing something that isn't good for his career?

"No, dear, you have to see _that_ for yourself. You don't want me to spoil you with other stuff, I won't spoil you with this. Just keep watching." Aw, that's not nice. But alas, her mother is right. And so she hits the play-button again.

There are some sounds from off-camera that sound suspiciously like he _really_ has to get her… Laura, that's what he called her. More giggling and some laughter from him, then: _"Later, young lady. And only if you say hi to my family."_ She can hear protestations, but he's obviously used to this. _"Nuh-uh, you promised. Now be a good little Marine."_ A _Marine_? On the other end, her mother snorts again, because she probably heard her surprised gasp.

"That's how I reacted. And don't worry, I had this fleeting thought that they brainwashed him or something, too. But keep watching, here she comes now." And yes, he's coming in to the picture again, followed by a young woman with a very light limp… who turns around again immediately. She can't see their faces, but she's pretty sure there's this typical "Uh… nope, can't do it, gotta go."-expression on the woman's face. Her brother manages to catch her around the waist and simply drags her down with him on the couch.

The moment, the woman turns her face to the camera – after fussing around a little with Evan and swatting his hands away that he just placed on her thigh to keep her down, of course – she pauses the DVD again, to get a better first look at her. She's a red-head with shoulder-long hair… or maybe a little longer, looking to be in her mid or late twenties – for some reason that irritates her a little, because it would mean that she is even younger than herself – and just not like her brother's type _at all_. But somehow… she looks familiar… "You're giving her the once over, aren't you?"

Argh. Sometimes she thinks her mother is psychic, and she always does that when she is prepared least for it. She just sighs. "Yes, I did. It's not like I didn't with all his other girls." And usually she was even able to predict how long it would hold. But with this one… maybe she needs to watch her a little longer.

"And I don't blame you, honey. You're his sister and that entitles you to be the greatest critic of his girlfriends." Uh-huh. Yeah. Sure.

"Mom… I won't even pretend I believe a word of that, alright? So… let's just get on, shall we." And with that, the DVD is running again.

Evan is now leaning back comfortably against the couch, and his girlfriend tentatively leans back as well. What surprises her is that she can already somehow see that there's an amount of trust, affection and attraction between the two she hasn't witnessed between Evan and any of his other girlfriends. She wonders how long exactly this is already going on.

"_Alright, uh… family, this is Lieutenant Laura Cadman, USMC."_ Cadman… that name triggers something in her… _yes_! She's read that name in two or three of his past letters, only in passing, like "Lieutenant Cadman just asked if I accompany her to the mess hall, gotta go." or "Got rid of the sample when I gave it to Cadman who was happy to play around with it.", and only _now_ she realizes that this already should have told her that Evan was on to something.

"_Ahem… hi, Evan's family."_ The Lieutenant blushes a little, tries a little friendly smile and even waves. But then she turns around to Evan, and suddenly the nervousness is gone again. _"Alright, I said hi to your family. Can we now…?"_

"_Honey, not in front of the kids!"_, he interrupts her horrified and after a shock second, the Lieutenant starts laughing a rich, loud laughter that she likes immediately. And she likes very much how that laughter makes Evan glow. Her own mouth curls into a bright grin.

"He's hooked, isn't he?", her mother asks, and she's surprised to detect a strange wistful note in this. Huh? Is their mother, who always took great pride in being able to cope with her children growing up so very well, suddenly getting all teary-eyed at seeing her big boy seriously in love?

"Yes, he is. He's really got it bad. Head over heels." She can already tell from the way he's delighted with making his girl laugh, or the little kiss on her neck he just sneaked in without even remembering that there was a camera present – usually something he took great care of refraining from in the company of his family – or the gentle, playful way he just won't let go of the hand that was just about to swat him on the shoulder he caught.

"_You can be such an idiot, Evan Lorne."_ And she notices something else. The Lieutenant… Laura's feelings seem to equal these of her brother. She doesn't know Laura as well as Evan – in fact, she doesn't know her _at all_ – but she's been a college lecturer on sociology long enough to be able to read her. It's the fact that as soon as her focus is on Evan, Laura forgets the camera watching them and puts away the mask of nervousness she has displayed only moments before. It's like… she can be herself around him, and that's a dead giveaway that she is as hooked as Evan. She pauses the DVD again.

"You know, I think that girl is as hooked as he is. I don't know what it is, but I've got the feeling that there's more to this relationship than to other relationships I know… including my own." That's bold, and she hopes her mother doesn't misunderstand it and immediately start quizzing her if she's got any problems in her marriage she hasn't told her mother about. But she hasn't… she just has the feeling that those two – her brother and Laura – have had to overcome much more obstacles than most other couples she knows.

There is, for example the issue of non-fraternization, and she knows her brother well enough that it must cause him severe headaches. This one woman has to be something special that he still takes everything upon him that defying non-frat rules means. She's also inclined to think that Laura must be a woman who takes her job very seriously as well – it sounds very unlikely to her that Evan would be in love like this with a soldier who doesn't share his passion and dedication – so that for her it probably isn't easy as well. Suddenly she'd _really_ love to get to know this Marine.

"Anna… just for the record: You know that you can talk to me about everything and…" Aw, no, just like she predicted. She takes a deep resigned breath.

"No, mom, that's not what I meant. I was just thinking about all this non-frat stuff and the fact that they are based somewhere far away and dangerous and that this is just probably a whole galaxy away from a usual stateside relationship." Come on, mom, don't pout now. This is not the place for another discussion about "showing respect to my elders", she thinks. Mostly, because her mother only whips out that line when she's right.

"I was just saying… Anyway, it's not over yet." Sighing, she hits the play-button again.

"_You're starting to sound redundant, darling."_, her brother answers the infamous exclamation from his girlfriend. She just sticks out her tongue, and that prompts him to lunge at her and kiss her fully on the lips. Probably hide this vid from the kids, she thinks. Last time their uncle had been in a relationship they had been much too young to actually register it and they are just so used to seeing the eternal bachelor in him. Additionally they are still in the "Eww, _kissing_!"-stage. And maybe hide it from Charlie as well… she just has this feeling that he wouldn't be too thrilled about seeing his brother in law mess around with a junior officer so openly.

On the screen, Evan's momentum propels both him and Laura to the floor and the sound of laughter and giggling can be heard again. Now only their heads are still visible. She shakes her head, incredulously. Had her brother looked a little older than his 35 years at the beginning of this video, then he surely appears much younger now. And then she witnesses something else that looks quite unique.

Because suddenly, she hears a small cry that is something between pained and irritated. Immediately, the commotion on the bottom of the screen stops and she can see a change in Evan's demeanour. Obviously something hurt Laura and he's serious all of a sudden. Tenderly he cups her face with one hand and says softly: _"Hey, everything okay?"_

She smiles a little strained and holds up her right hand and she can see a brace around Laura's wrist. _"Yeah, sure. Just caught the wrong angle. Look, everything's…"_ She obviously wants to show him that she can put strain on the wrist and uses the hand to push herself upwards. _"Okay… obviously not _everything_."_ Pain shortly crosses Laura's face, and Evan seems to have seen it as well.

"_Maybe you should have one of the docs look at it."_, he says frowning and somehow that look tells her that there's more to the wrist than just a training accident.

"_No, really. The wrist's okay, the ankle's okay… I'm okay. Everything__'s okay."_ Evan looks like he doesn't believe a word, probably because this is not the first discussion of that kind they have.

"_Laura…"_ Before he can say anything else, Laura takes his face in her hands and places a light kiss on his lips. He sighs and puts his forehead to hers. _"We've talked about this, remember? No more playing down injuries."_ In return, she kisses him again and runs her healthy hand through his hair.

"_And I'm not. Honestly."_ She is surprised to see how being touched by Laura soothes her brother. The frown still stays on, but the simple act of kissing him and running her hand through his hair settles Evan down. Suddenly this isn't fooling around anymore, but a very private exchange between two people, and she knows she shouldn't be watching this, but this side of her brother is so new and alien to her that she can't help continuing.

"What do you think, how long this has already been going on, mom?", she asks her mother a little absentmindedly, while the couple in front of her closes their discussion with another kiss and then getting up.

"Well… three or four months tops." Huh? She's surprised at how ready her mother is with that answer, and her mother probably knows it already, because she adds: "Half a year ago he mentioned her name the first time. Five months ago he already mentioned her four times in one letter. And three and a half months ago, there was a sketch of her in his letter." Of _course_. _That_'s why Laura Cadman looks so familiar to her. Her mother had shown her the piece – very carefully drawn and without any explanation as to who that is and both of them had been a little suspicious – and she has no clue how she could have forgotten about that.

"Mom… you knew, didn't you?" On the screen, Evan and Laura are sitting on the couch again, and Laura has finally lost a little of her camera-shyness, looking more relaxed than at the start. She has drawn up her right leg and lightly leans into Evan, who has put an arm on the backrest behind her.

"I suspected. Now listen, it's important." Well… whatever. She can ask her mother why she suspected and never told her after this.

"_Uh, okay… where was I? Oh, right. I know it's been a long time since I've been home, and I'm really sorry for that. But there's been a lot of work and something always comes up and…"_ Laura whacks him on his thigh, not exactly discreetly, and it makes her snort, because he obeys her immediately, even though he looks at her a little irritated. _"Okay, okay, I get it, Lieutenant. Well, long story short: I…_ we _will be going on leave in three months, for six weeks. And we were… thinking about… passing three of them with you. If that's okay with you, I mean."_

It throws her so off-course that she has to pause the DVD again. For a moment, she's speechless. Her big brother is coming home. He's really coming _home_. It's been nearly a year since she's seen him for real the last time, and that had been only for an hour or so, because he had been here on business at Cheyenne Mountain and she had been in Colorado Springs incidentally.

"Mom… he's not joking, right? I mean… he really means that, doesn't he?" That would be… the kids are gonna _flip_, because it's been _ages_ since they saw their uncle.

"Yes, I do believe he is serious. I've already read the letter, and there he says that they intent to share the three weeks between us and her parents and asks if we'd like to pass at least part of the three weeks with them at the beach." Huh. She grins.

"Good God, if I wasn't already dead sure that he's in love, I'd be now. How many girls has he allowed to the beach? One? Two?"

"Exactly _one_. The one before that girl…. What's her name? Oh right, Laura. Should really get used to that name." What the…? Their mother isn't starting to get jealous, right? Because she never had displayed this kind of jealousy only a mother can display at the girlfriend of her son before. "Anyway… it's been one girl, and it took him over a year. We're in for the visit of our lives, I just bet." There… the strange undertone again.

"You're not going to give her a hard time, right? Because that would be totally out of character for you." For a moment, her mother doesn't say anything.

Then: "Of course not. Why should I? And continue with that DVD, there's still the punch line missing." Huh, "Why should I?", her ass. Her mother does have issues with Laura already, and that's something they really should talk about before the both of them arrive here. Preferably right after she is through with the DVD.

"There's… a _punch line_?"

"Oh yes. Come on, just put it on again." She shrugs. Alright.

On the screen, Evan now leans back his head on the couch's backrest. _"Well… that was fun."_ Laura makes a face.

"_Absolutely. Well, apart from the falling-off-the-couch-bit, maybe."_, she deadpans and Evan raises his head again, pointing his index finger at her.

"_Hey, don't blame_ that _on me._ You _started it."_ Uh… she begs to differ. It was _him_ who threw them both off the couch, and she already makes a mental note to tell Laura she is totally on her side here.

"_Uh-huh, yeah, right."_ There, good girl. Give it back to him.

And yes, he obviously realizes pretty fast that he would lose if he really chose to fight about it. _"Um… how about we just get started with the_ real _vid now?"_ Wha… wait. Did he just say…?

"_Yeah, we better. I mean, imagine anyone got to see_ this _one."_

The screen fades to black, and she chokes. The first thing getting out is another snort, followed by something between a laugh and giggle and then she finally laughs out loud. She can't believe this. They never intended to send this. But she instantly decides that she likes this better than _any_ other proper video they could have sent.

"I knew you'd like it. And imagine the fun we'll be having when they are finally here." She can imagine her mother's devious grin very well. Sometimes her mother scares her, because of the underlying evil tendencies. But she's right: This is the _best_ teasing material Evan ever offered them, even better than all his embarrassing childhood videos combined.

"Can't wait for the three months to be over. I'd really like to get to know this girl better." It's a bait for her mother, and she hopes she falls for it.

"I… yeah, me too." A-HA! She _knew_ it. Well then, better she talks to her mother now than with the kids running through the house or Charlie wanting to do a little cuddling, because she has this feeling that this conversation will take longer than a few minutes.

"About that, mom… I think we need to talk."


	2. Chapter 2

**Two**

Ah, home… just what he needs after three months deep in the Borneo jungle. No mosquitoes, no 100 humidity, no trees, trees, trees and even more trees… just good old Lake Michigan in the distance, suburban neighborhood idyll and an April thunderstorm pouring down. Well, better get inside his parents' house fast, before he's wet to the bone _again_.

As he steps through the door, he's surprised not to see his mother greet him enthusiastically, like she usually does. He might be 33, but that obviously doesn't keep his mother from worrying about him when he's away on one of his field photography trips. Curious, he simply puts his bags at the foot of the steps – no doubt his mother will admonish him for that later – and hangs his dripping wet jacket over the staircase's post – which will probably make his father grumble at him again for ruining the wood.

Walking into the living room, he finally finds his parents in front of the TV… arguing. "It's always the same with you, Ron. You just can't figure out this DVD-whatsitnot, and then we have to call the company _again_." He rolls his eyes. Before his father can deadpan something back, he clears his throat to announce his presence.

"How about you let _me_ figure out the DVD-whatsitnot?" Both turn around a little startled, and after a second his mother's face lights up like it always does when he comes home from months of photographing. His dad simply gives him a tight smile to acknowledge his presence, like he always does.

"Well, better you than your mother.", his father comments, grinning a little sheepish at his mother who pretends she hasn't heard this and comes walking over to him to embrace him tightly.

"It's good to have you back, Mat." For a moment, he wants to tell her that he isn't 18 anymore, and that he didn't pass the three months in Iraq, but in the end he just hugs his mother back.

"It's good to be back." He gives his mother his usual peck on the cheek and then walks over to his parents' DVD-player to check if they damaged it beyond recovery or if they just couldn't figure out which button to press first. "And anyway, what's the commotion about, huh?"

Instead of an answer, his father hands him the DVD they were obviously about to watch. It's labeled "Family vid" in Laura's unmistakably untidy scribble. Oh. Oooh! He grins. About time his little sister drops them a line again. Her last letter was two months ago, and he hasn't even gotten around reading it yet, hasn't heard more than the bits and pieces his mother told him on the phone. And her last DVD… must have been about five months now.

"I suspect there will be something about this man she wrote about on there.", his mother says, and her tone hasn't changed a bit since Laura's last letter, where she told them about her new boyfriend.

"I hope there is, mom.", he replies, although he knows that his _mother_ is probably hoping Laura tells them she's broken up again. For some reason, their mother has taken an intense dislike to this guy, although Laura didn't even write much about him. In fact, all he knows is a name, a rank and the guy's age. Major Evan Lorne, 35 years. He's not even sure if Laura actually mentioned the guy's service branch… oh, wait, Air Force. Yeah, that's it.

"And _I_ hope to see my daughter as soon as possible.", his father replies dryly, reminding him to get this DVD started. With a sigh, he simply puts it in, activates the TV and hits the play-button. He can just refrain from asking what was so hard about _that_, because he really doesn't want to get into an argument about not respecting his parents with his mother. Getting into arguments with his mother is _Laura's_ specialty.

"Alright, here you go." With anticipation, he scoots over to one of the arm chairs and lounges into it, pointedly ignoring his mother's protests of sitting straight up like any self-respecting adult would. And yes, there she is, sitting on a couch – again he wonders where the hell she's based – looking a little nervous, like she always does in front of cameras. But even before she can speak up, his mother demands he pauses the vid. Rolling his eyes, he does.

"Is that some brace around her wrist? And are those cuts in her face? This isn't a fading black eye there, right?" Well… she does look a little banged up. But then again, she's a Marine officer based in a top secret location in a combat zone, responsible for blowing stuff up. Bruises are to be expected.

"Diana, what did you expect? She's a soldier. These things do happen to soldiers once in a while." Yeah, his father should know. Not only did he some service with the Marines as well, but also two of his brothers were or still are Marines. In fact, he suspects that their uncle John, who's a Colonel at NORAD, knows much more about what Laura is _really_ doing than he lets shine through.

"She's a young woman with bruises in her face. If that man…" He rolls his eyes again.

"Mom, _stop_ doing that. You didn't have a problem with the Doc. Why do you suddenly have one with the Major?" Alright, wrong question. They _all_ know why Diana Cadman has a problem with another soldier as her daughter's boyfriend. But really… it's been nearly ten years now. He's sure that _Laura_ has kept true to her vow to forget about all of this.

"You know that very well." He chooses not to continue this discussion. Unlike Laura, he _knows_ when to stop antagonizing their mother. Instead, he simply hits the play button again and catches a grateful look from his father.

"_Okay… uh… where to start?"_, Laura says on the screen.

"_How about saying "hi"?"_, a sarcastic male voice answers from off-camera. The comment is immediately followed by Laura making a face in the direction of the voice.

"_Shut up, Major Camera-whore. It's not your turn yet."_ He sneaks his mother a look. And yes, she's horrified at Laura's choice of words, but he already loves it. It means serving overseas hasn't changed her as much as he was afraid of.

"_What can I say? It's a gift. Camera loves me."_ Laura's only answer to that is rolling her eyes. _"Come on, you do, too."_ So far, it's promising. That guy certainly doesn't sound like he always thought an Air Force Major would sound. But then again, his sister doesn't sound like he thought a Marine Corps Lieutenant would sound. Well… most of the time, anyway.

There's a slight sniff from his mother, followed by: "He really sounds awfully… like a show-off."

He shrugs. "Those Air Force guys get trusted with equipment worth millions of dollars on a daily basis. I guess showing-off comes naturally to them." Personally, he likes it that this Major can dish out his own deal of teasing. He'd liked the Scot who was Laura's last boyfriend, but he always had the feeling that they didn't really fit… the Scot was just a tad too gentle, and Laura was just a tad too brash.

On the screen, Laura has finally shut her Major up and looks into the camera again. _"Anyway, where was I? Oh right… Hi everyone! Hi mom, finally got the gloves you made. They're great! Hi dad, how's the knee? Still bothering you? Hi Mat, hope you're already back from… wherever you've been to. Send me some pictures? Hi Paul, congratulations! And to Addy as well. Hope she and the little one are okay. Uh… oh, and…"_

"_Uh, Laura… hate to remind you, but… we're a bit on the clock here. The_ Daedalus _leaves in about two hours, and we really need to get this done if we don't want to wait another three weeks."_ Aw, pity. He'd have loved to see how many family members she would list, just to get back at her Major for the "How about saying "hi"?"-comment. He just bets that she really meant the greetings for everyone of them, but everything after that would have just been teasing her boyfriend.

"_Well then, would you please come over here, Major Lorne, if it's not __too much of an inconvenience to you?"_ There's one thing… one thing he just doesn't get. Isn't this Major supposed to be her superior? And isn't it illegal for those to screw around with their subordinates? He really has to ask her about this one. Wouldn't surprise him if she'd just steamrolled her superiors – including that Major – and gotten her will anyway.

Well, he can wrack his head later about this. Because, now, _finally_, the Major walks into the picture and sits down beside Laura. Huh. Did he just hear his mother mumble: "At least he's not looking that bad."? Anyway, that guy is totally Laura's type. Much more than the Scottish doctor. The bearing, the eyes, the self-conscious grin… yeah, she goes for that. Always has. And as much as his mother is fretting about it, she's always had a penchant for older men. Granted, it's a little weird that this guy is older than himself, but who is he to mind if Laura doesn't?

"_Alright, family… in case you haven't already noticed, this is Major Evan Lorne, USAF, whom the camera loves and who is my b… current significant other."_ Lorne turns to her, with surprise and disbelief in his face.

"_Your "current significant other"? What happened to the good old boyfriend?"_ Oh, he could tell that guy. Every time Laura introduces a new boyfriend to her family, she gets a little awkward. Just like now. He has no idea where that is coming from, but _maybe_ it has to do something with the fact that she's the only girl and had to endure _lots_ of teasing from her two older brothers during growing up.

"_Hey, we're not 16 anymore. That's the last possible age where that still sounds cool."_ She tries to look dignified and is determined not to look at him, but Lorne just grins at her, knowing full well that she can still see it from the corner of her eye.

Then he raises his eyebrow and gives her a dry: _"Oh, and "current significant other" is cool how?"_

Now she has given up the dignified act and turns to him, making a face and replying: _"Aw, shut up. You're just trying to irritate me."_

Now a smug grin. _"With pleasure."_ For a moment, it looks like she's about to jump her Major and wipe that grin of his face – for some reason he has the feeling that their sparring sessions are _very_ interesting and it's kind of weird to think this about his little sister – but then she obviously remembers the camera in the room and refrains from anything more than rolling her eyes.

In this moment, his mother decides to barge in again. "She doesn't really want to sell us this guy as her new boyfriend, right? I mean… they aren't even touching each other." No, they aren't. And that's intriguing him. But he opts to keep his mouth shut about what he thinks is the real reason for this, because his mother _and_ father would probably flip. As it is, it looks very much like they keep this minimal distance, because if they didn't, they'd certainly stop paying any attention to the camera _at all_. He bends his head a little. Oh… he'd really like to take some pictures of those two. He's a professional nature photographer and simply has no interest in taking pictures of humans, but he'd make an exception for his sister and her boyfriend, just like he'll make an exception for his brother's new-born son.

But his father surprises him. "I don't know about you, Diana, but for me… it looks like there's a reason why they're not touching." His father tries to hide his amusement, but the smile still shines through.

It also surprises him how… horrified his mother looks at his father. "I do _not_ want to hear things like this about my little girl!" On the screen, his mother's little girl has finally quit the poking war that had started between her and her boyfriend when they had both given up on trying to keep their hands off each other. She looks like she's about to say something important, clearing her throat and swatting away Lorne's hand that has inched closer and closer to her neck.

But he's had it now with his mother's over-protectiveness and pauses the vid. Trying to contain his irritation he turns to his mother. "Mom… how often do we have to say this until you get it? Your "little girl" is 28 years old, a Lieutenant of the United States Marine Corps and blowing up shit" – yeah, yeah, language and all that – "in some country far away, and she's obviously fucking good at it. She's also a very attractive young woman with a guy who's _very much_ her type as her boyfriend and there's _no_ reason why she should live like a nun."

He can't believe he's saying this about his _little sister_ – the one that drove Paul and him crazy when she followed them around in an age when a little sister in tow was about the most embarrassing thing _ever_, the one that bested them at climbing trees, sneaking around the underbrush and generally getting herself in scrapes just to spite them and show them that she _could_… the one that held them back from giving the first soldier she dated a run for his money, because she didn't want her brothers to get in trouble for this piece of… he still doesn't even have a name for him.

But he now realizes that he's _right_. Laura _is_ 28 years old, and she's grown up, as much as probably all of them still don't want to admit it. He turns his gaze back on the screen where Laura and her Major are frozen in mid-motion. They look at each other, and he doesn't know if he's just imagining it, but for just a fleeting moments he has a kind of epiphany. He can see these two in his mind as clearly as he can see them on the screen; only it's 20 years later and they have aged, but they're still looking at each other like they're now – with confidence and trust and the knowledge that they can make it another 20 years together, if Fate grants them this gift.

A little confused, he blinks and shakes away this image. He's never been an esoteric kind of guy, always very pragmatic, never daydreaming, living in the here and now… and so this is a little disconcerting, because it just looked so… _real_. In fact, he wouldn't be surprised a bit if Laura is about to tell them that she'll marry her Major, even after only three or four months.

What _is_ surprising him is: He wouldn't be opposed to it. From what he can tell, this guy is good for her and can keep up with her. The Major can also cope with her brazen nature and hold his own against her. For some reason he has the feeling that things aren't always easy between the two of them – a guy who makes Major in his mid-thirties or maybe even earlier is most probably not someone who backs down easily in a fight – but that doesn't have to be a bad thing necessarily.

But he knows better than to voice these assumptions out loud, because that would just erupt into another argument, and he really wants to know what Laura has to say now. They can still let his mother explode when it's over. Obviously, his mother agrees to that. "Alright, fine. Just go on with the video." It's not over yet, and if Laura ever should decide to marry this man, he'll make sure _not_ to be in the same place with Laura and their mother when she tells her about it.

Sighing, he hits the play button. _"Okay, now that we have survived your short relapse into your teenager years…"_ The Major grins.

"_You mean _your_ teenager years."_

Laura just rolls her eyes and catches the Major's hand in mid-air. He notices that she doesn't let it go again, totally without consciously noticing it. _"Yeah, whatever. Anyway…mom, dad, and whoever else is there… I bet you're all burning to get to know this juvenile zoomie here. So… uh… I hope you don't mind us coming 'round in about three months."_ Wha… Did she really say what he thought she did? He turns around to look at his parents. On his father's face there's just a very faint smile, but he's pretty sure that their old man is delighted with seeing his little girl again. She hasn't been home since she stopped working at the Mountain and went overseas again a few months ago, and their father hasn't said much about it, but if you looked real close, you could see very well how he worried.

But on his mother's face, there's genuine surprise and disbelief. As if she's already foreseen this, Laura speaks up again. _"Close your mouth again, Mom, once in a while even we here get some leave, and mine… ours was overdue. Hope you don't mind if we impose ourselves for three weeks on you. The exact dates are in the letter."_ The Major clears his throat, probably to tell her to come to an end, because after that she's speaking considerably faster. _"Oh, and if anyone happens to see Mat: Force him to be at home when we get there. Tie him down if you have to. I swear, if he's gone to God knows where for the only three weeks his little sister might be home this year, I'm personally gonna track him down and give him what he deserves."_

Beside her, the Major seems to get a shade paler. He clears his throat. _"As much as I hate to say it: She's not joking. She really can do that. And remember: That woman handles C4 on a daily basis." _Well… he probably should take this guy's warning to his heart. And anyway, he's made enough money with the Borneo job that he can easily afford a few months back home to sort through his pictures, renew his portfolio, take that nice editor he's had his eyes on even before Borneo to dinner… He heaves a silent sigh. Bye, bye, _National Geographic_ job, bye, bye Kyrgyzstan. The things he does for his little sister, really.

"_Yeah, thanks for sharing _that_ with the class, Evan."_ His sister makes a face at her Major, and he has this feeling that they should get done fast with the video, because they clearly have something else to do with their spare time on their minds. _"Anyway, I really gotta go, because the mail plane is going to leave soon. Love you all and hope to see you soon. Bye, everyone!"_ And with that she blows a kiss towards the camera, waves and… doesn't immediately shut the camera off.

Which is why they get to hear a very relieved _"Well, that certainly went better than the rehearsal to _my _video."_ from the Major.

That's answered with a smirk by Laura and: _"Yeah, at least I didn't fall off the couch this time."_ Fall off the couch? What the hell were they doing? Wait… no, he really doesn't want to know that. Just all kinds of TMI.

And then comes something no one of them is prepared for. The Major just grins a little feral, growls: _"How about we try_ that _again, just without the falling off part?"_ and starts full out kissing her. Good _God_. In one corner of his mind, he's already waiting for his mother to come down with a heart attack, but he just can't take his eyes off the screen. For a few more seconds, he sees Laura eagerly responding and certainly wouldn't be surprised if some of his synapses were simply fried by those pictures.

Then suddenly, Laura half breaks the kiss and breathlessly says between giggles: _"Oh, crap! Camera, Evan!"_

The last thing they get to see of the couple is the Major who's grinning a little apologetic and saying: _"Sorry you had to see that. But it was all_ her _fault."_ and the screen is dark again.

For a full second no one says a word and he's afraid to turn around and see that _both_ his parents have been struck with a heart attack, but then his father speaks up again, with a surprisingly dry voice: "Well… that was… interesting."

Slowly, he turns around, and now he only holds back his full grin for the sake of his mother. "You really have a talent for understatement, dad."

His father, who equally tries not to break out into laughter, simply replies: "Thanks, son."

But it's his mother who takes the cake with calmly announcing: "Alright. They'll get separate rooms, that's for sure." Then she does her amazing specialty of changing topics without missing a beat and says: "How was Bosnia, Matthew?"

He clears his throat. "Borneo, mom."

She waves her hand dismissively "Whatever. How was it?"

He really doesn't believe this. Just a few minutes ago, his little sister had been making out right in front of their eyes – something she's honestly _never_ done before, mostly because she didn't want her older brothers to give the guy in question a hard time – and all his mother does is stating the separate rooms rule and simply starting to quiz him about his last photo job. But… there'd be no use in talking about this anymore for the time being, and so he just concedes while standing up and following his mother into the kitchen to set dinner. "Well… we mostly had a lot of trees… and rain. And there was this cool Orangutan, who…"

* * *

**A/N:** You can all thank **mac** that I posted the second chapter so soon after the first. She brib... motivated me in the best way one could motivate a LorneLover: With pictures of our favorite Major :D But there was a deal that said: This chapter now, but having to wait a little for the Prologue to the next longer story (which is slowly starting to shape up... at least I finally moved beyond the stage of having only a working title...). So... enjoy this, for I can not say how long until the next story (knowing myself... probably not more than a week, but I just don't want to jinx anything here ;)).


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